Strasberg’s Contract Shows a Great Need to Re-do the MLB Draft

Matt explored the contract negotiating holdout of Michael Crabtree, and Monday is the deadline for Steven Strasburg, the Washington Nationals number one overall pick in the MLB draft to sign. Strasberg has yet to reach an agreement with the Washington Nationals. It doesn’t sound like a deal will get done by Monday’s deadline as the Boras and the Nationals have put different values on Strasburg. I’m not a Nationals fan by any means, so I kind of hope they don’t sign him. It could be the first time ever that a team has failed to sign their first round pick two years in a row! I’m not a supporter of making a team pay $50 million for a player that hasn’t thrown one pitch at the major league level. I feel that their $30 million offer was more than fair, and probably too much. Regardless of what happens it shows that baseball needs to fix the way the outdated drafting and signing system is working.

Just like the NFL there are a lot of holdouts in baseball. I understand that players are just trying to get paid what their agents and others surrounding them feel they are worth, but what happened to proving your worth!?! Baseball needs to restructure signings, and put caps on contracts for the players that haven’t played one inning in the minors or majors. Putting parameters on guaranteed money and bonuses that the top choices can receive would make them like all of the other major sports, what a concept! They also need to make other ways for teams to avoid having to pay huge dollars for those top picks, like say, let a team trade picks!?! Wow, how hard is that. Baseball is the only sport that doesn’t allow the trading of draft picks. In this case, the Nationals could have traded their pick away to a team with money and willingness to sign Strasberg. I’m sure he would already be signed, and the Nationals could have had a couple of picks and could’ve signed a four or five players with money Strasberg is demanding.

Do you wonder why I’m so against Strasberg’s contract? Take a guy like Ryan Howard of the Phillies, who has already been rookie of the year, MVP, an All-Star, and a two time home run champ. He won his bid for the highest arbitration awarded in the history of baseball for $10 million just last year. With the conclusion of this season Howard will have made a total of about $26 million in his three year career since being drafted, which sounds reasonable for one of the best young hitters in the game. Since Howard was a 5th round pick he probably was paid the right amount, but Strasberg would be making twice as much as him at the same point in his career if the contract that he’s asking for goes through. Is any player that hasn’t played worth $50 million? Can he really be as dominant as the money he’s due to recieve? Can any team justify really give any rookie that much money!?! Definitely not! Over the past 40 years there has been 14 pitcher taken #1 overall, and they have a combined zero Cy Youngs, zero 20 win season, and zero 200 career wins.

So how would being able to trade draft picks help? Well it’s been well documented that if this were the case the Yankees, Red Sox, and Mets would end up with all the talent since they have all the money. I disagree if a small market team can turn that first pick into three picks, then they will likely find a good player out of the bunch with much less risk to their financial situation. Especially small market teams like the A’s, Rays, and Marlins would definitely benefit from taking numerous picks instead of that first rounder. People assume that teams are going to make a bad pick with the extra ones they have received, but nobody that’s drafted is garuanteed to have success. The players chosen might likely have more “tools”, but there is no guarantee that tying up their payroll in a prospect will help the team down the road. Don’t you think a team could get a better deal paying $6 to $10 million a year for a proven player? I think being able to swap picks will just give teams more options, and not give teams like the Nationals, a sign this guy or you’re out of luck scenario! Hell, Strasberg could even end up on my list of bad contracts before he throws a major league pitch.

8 responses to “Strasberg’s Contract Shows a Great Need to Re-do the MLB Draft”

If they can’t afford to sign Strasberg. What the hell happens then ? He goes off to Japan for a year ? As he can’t re-enter college having signed Scott Boras as his agent. This is one monumental mess and a complete embarrassment for MLB as well as for the Padres organization. Not that Jeff Moorad can’t afford $10m .

Yeah, I’m not sure what’ll happen to Strasburg, but I can’t imagine any reason why he’d want to sit out for a year, when he could be getting the recognition he needs to make his next big contract if he is that good! It’ should be interesting to see what he does. I think Boras needs to get knocked off that high horse he’s riding on, and do what’s best for his client like getting him on the field!

I think you’re over-estimating the intelligence of the hierarchy of MLB as well as the owners and the Players’ Union . They’re all one great big joke ! You put all of these guys in a room and then they all farted in unison. Then they’d end up pointing a finger towards each other denying that none of them were actually the culprit . LOL, LOL,LOL !!!!

You’re right there are tons of problems in baseball, and the draft is one that they could easily change. It could even get them a little more press anc coverage if they could work it out to resemble the NFL and NBA’s a little more. Even if they just televise the first round or two!

I don’t see why for all sense and purpose they don’t incorporate the following. One a rookie comes up from any part of a team’s farm system. The arbitration clock is said to kick in . Three years from that date they’re said to be paid on a what they deem to be the rookie minimum scale within that particular organization. What not make it mandatory that there’s a flat rookie salary scale for all rookies. Wherein they’re paid a minimum for their first initial three years ? And then thereafter all contracts then become incentive laden based upon a player’s productivity. For all sense and purpose that’s what is being done within the NBA for rookies. It ought to be also incorporated by the NFL. That way the agents would be so emboldened in trying to bend the owners and GM’s over a barrel and try to spoon them , for want of a better word. LOL, LOL,LOL !!!

That sounds like a pretty good solution! I have to say that the NBA has it figured out the best. I don’t exactly agree with the whole lottery part, but that’s another story… Either way baseball needs to make some kind of cap or scale for rookies!

As for the Nationals paying Strasberg a $15m signing bonus. Strasberg’s agent Scott Boras pulled the wool over the organization’s eyes. The kid won’t be with the organization two or the three years from now. And they’ll still be stinking up the joint !

[…] really the first time most will see him pitch live. He’s a 21-year-old lefty that is asking for Strasberg type money, actually more than Steven asked for, which I thought was ridiculous. Alas, he very well […]